Many cities have decided to include #LGBTQ rights in their ant-discrimination laws, as Phoenix City Council did in 2013. Their law states that “any business that obtains or solicits customers from the general public” can not refuse service based on a person’s sexual orientation.
The owners of the Brush & Nib Studio are self-professing Christians. They believed that being forced to create custom invitations for same-sex weddings was a violation of their first amendment rights to freedom of speech and religious practice. Their 2016 lawsuit against the city was resolved in the artists’ favor in 2019, when the court ordered Phoenix to pay Brush & Nib's legal costs.
Every citizen of the United States is granted certain rights under the Constitution, and they have the freedom to express their beliefs. Same-sex marriages are against some people’s religious beliefs. Whether or not other people share the same view does not change the fact that they are allowed to express it. The court’s decision to uphold the law was definitely the right move.
Justice Andrew Gould, in his former position at the Arizona Supreme Court, wrote on the behalf of the 4-3 majority in the decision: "the guarantees of free speech and freedom of religion are not only for those who are deemed sufficiently enlightened, advanced, or progressive. They are for everyone."
The artists were not arguing that businesses should be able to exclude LGBTQ+ customers from buying their products. It was specifically in reference to their freedom to decline orders for custom artwork. As Brush & Nib co-owner Breanna Koski elaborated, “the government shouldn't be telling artists what they can and can't say. We're challenging this law not just for us, but for all artists to be able to create freely."
People can't pick and choose which beliefs should fall under free speech based on whether or not they agree with them. The exact same Constitutional rights apply to everyone, and no one should be forced to say something… whether vocally or in writing… that is contrary to their personal convictions.
